Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of The Interfaith Alliance, discusses the philosophy and implications of secularism and the importance of a relationship between religion and politics.

C. Welton Gaddy

Rev. Dr. Welton Gaddy is the leader of two national nonpartisan grassroots and educational organizations, The Interfaith Alliance and The Interfaith Alliance Foundation, and serves as the pastor for preaching and worship at Northminster (Baptist) Church in Monroe, Louisiana.

One of twenty international religious leaders on the Council of 100 Leaders, a group created by the World Economic Forum to improve dialogue and understanding between the Western and Islamic worlds, Rev. Gaddy is host of "State of Belief," a weekly radio show produced by The Interfaith Alliance (carried on AirAmerica), which is based on the proposition that religion has a positive and healing role to play in the life of the nation.

Founded in 1994, The Interfaith Alliance (TIA) has grown into a national grassroots organization of 150,000+ individuals of faith and goodwill drawn from more than seventy-five different religious traditions or beliefs with a cyber-network of 10,000 activists and seventy-five local activist groups. Dedicated to promoting mutual respect, cooperation, and civility, TIA strives to promote religion as a positive and healing force in the life of the nation.

In addition to authoring over twenty books, Dr. Gaddy provides regular commentary to the national media on issues relating to religion and politics. His appearances include CNN Presents: The Fight Over Faith; PBS's NOW with Bill Moyers; PBS Frontline's The Jesus Factor; PBS's The Newshour with Jim Lehrer; NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw; CBS Evening News with Dan Rather; ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings; numerous National Public Radio stations including KQED's Forum in San Francisco and KCRW's The Politics of Culture in Los Angeles; CNBC's Capital Report; CNN's The World Today with Wolf Blitzer; CNN's Inside Politics with Judy Woodruff; PBS's Religion and Ethics Newsweekly; CBS's Freedom to Pray; C-SPAN's Washington Journal; NBC's Dateline. He is also the former host of Morally Speaking on NBC affiliate KTVE in Monroe, Louisiana.

While ministering to churches with a message of inclusion, Dr. Gaddy emerged as a leader among progressive and moderate Baptists. Among his many leadership roles, he is the immediate past president of the Alliance of Baptists and is a twenty-year member of the Commission of Christian Ethics of the Baptist World Alliance.

His past leadership roles include serving as a member of the General Council of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and chair of the Pastoral Leadership Commission of the Baptist World Alliance. He received his undergraduate degree from Union University in Tennessee and his doctoral degree and divinity training from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.